There should be no outdoor play until he has it firmly in his mind that the outdoors is the place to go to relieve himself, and is giving you signals that he needs to go out ( and RIGHT NOW). This may be whining, circling, sniffing at various places or going towards the door. IT'S UP TO YOU TO LEARN TO READ HIS MESSAGES !!!

Remember that you are dealing with a baby with a small bladder, and you should expect to have accidents to clean up until he is about 6 months old.

When accidents do happen, DO NOT RUB HIS NOSE IN IT, OR HIT HIM. A rolled up newspaper has no value in teaching a dog.

The dog crate will be your most valuable asset in the house-training effort. Dogs are den animals and he will not want to soil his sleeping area if he can help it.

He will whine or bark from the crate when he needs to go out, but he will do that too if he just wants to be with you. This is what is called the "Puppy Con" and you'll have to learn to differentiate between them. Ignore the message and you might be cleaning up a mess!